Politics in Mexico, Expulsion of Priest

In his analysis of the decline of the PRI, Sam Quinones (Opinion, March 8) is only partly right. To say that the PRI has no “overarching ideology” is just plain wrong; it is adamantly neoliberal. And the rise of political opposition is just one factor; equally important is the decaying economic structure.

True, the PRI’s slide dates from 1968, when priistas sent soldiers to kill middle-class student protesters, a decision that angered many. But the economic malaise also stems from that time. The Mexican “miracle,” enshrined by a host of pundits, had ended. Jobs for college graduates, for example, were hard to find. The collapse of petroleum prices in the 1970s, Mexico’s chief source of hard currency, exacerbated the picture. Since then, despite the brief upsurge during the reign of Carlos Salinas, most Mexicans have faced hard times, including the urban middle class, once a pillar of the PRI.

At present, not only are oil prices falling again but, to compound matters, nearly half of the national budget is mortgaged to foreign lenders, among them American bankers and the IMF. Given the austerity blueprint of Mexico’s elite, spending on social services, including schools, universities and health care, is at an all-time low, while wages fall, unemployment rises, bank loans are denied most Mexicans and urban crime thrives. All of this, plus endemic corruption in politics, helps explain the PRI’s misfortunes.

RAMON EDUARDO RUIZ

Rancho Santa Fe

* Regarding “Overkill in Mexico,” editorial, March 5: I agree that the Mexican government should not have expelled Father Michel Henry Jean Chanteau. I disagree, however, with the characterization of the priest as naive. The editorial mentioned that he had been in a poor village in Chiapas for 32 years. That puts him in a good position to understand the complexities of the situation.

The PRI government has a symbiotic relationship with wealthy landowners. Indian peasants who demand their rights are perceived as the enemy. The Acteal massacre was one of the many attacks that have taken place during the past three years. Government security forces have authorized their paramilitary allies to murder dozens of people, expel hundreds from their homes, and obstruct those who would help the displaced.

Father Chanteau was expelled for telling the truth.

PATRICK BONNER

South Gate